Monthly Archives: April 2012

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I have a follow-up to this monings post about squeezing out points and cash and that is taking advantage of the deals OfficaMax has now and then with their MaxPerks rebates sometimes as high as 100%. Let me show you one I did this week:

This takes some work and planning and after ebay and paypal fee’s I will make about $25 but with Ebates cash back and points more like $35 all-in. Also it takes about a month to get the MaxPerks back into your account to re-spend on the next round and you have to save Officemax coupons when they come in the mail.

I started this process with a tip from fellow BA blogger Frequent Miler who does the much easlier Staples 100% rebates but this one is for Officemax. Worth the work? It is to me. What do you think? – René

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Now what am I going on about today? Just this. Do you check to make sure you are getting all the points you are DUE? Let me give you an example and the rewards that can come to you. I got my statement on my Chase Freedom card for last month. The first quarter of the year they were offering 5x points for all gas purchases (4x bonus plus 1x for purchase = 5x)! I added up all the purchase and I was SHORT 200 points! 200 Ultimate Rewards points are worth just $2.50 cents. Most I bet would say not worth a phone call right? Wrong. I called and talked to the rep, she agreed the numbers were wrong, I suggested and said:

“for 5000 points I would pretend the error never happened”,

then she said:

“I could not do that but would put 1000 points immediately into your account since you had to take the time to call after our error”!

Oh how I love Chase.

I hope you see my point in this. To win BIG in this game we play, you need to start with being aware of what card to use for what purchase. Then be diligent enough to follow up and make sure you are getting what you were promised, and then ask for MORE when they make a mistake.

This advice, that it takes work, I focus on with another change to the blog, that of a new tab at the top called “♦ROOKIE?♦”. If you have anyone new to points who wants to understand what it takes, that is a good place to have them begin to understand why and how we do what we do!

Last tip to end the day is to pay close attention to the series Mommy Points has begun with preparation for the hoped for next US AIR grand slam promotion. I am collecting hotel, e-miles, eRewards and so much more to build up that account to get another free 1st class Lufthansa ticket before they merge with American Airlines and exit Star Alliance to join One World and your US AIR points become AA points! – Rene

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Congratulations to today’s Winners! #143 David & #553 Paparelleno

You both get a TSA lock, a GoGo 1 time pass and a DeltaPoints Luggage tag!

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I always check out Delta PR video’s through the official Delta YouTube channel but the other day when I was surfing around, the suggested videos “I may like to see” was the one below showing some of the old birds Delta has flown over the years. Boy did it bring back memories from my youth.

While Delta no longer flies 727’s anymore, they are still up in the air. Also, I am proudly a 25+ year ex-smoker and thus one who is the most easily offended by smoke! I remember being a smoker and smoking on airplanes. I also remember hating the smell when I was younger. My fellow BA blogger Frequent Flying has some old Delta seat maps of what it was like back in the day.

And if you get nostalgic, or just want to save some money on a set of flatware, and miss the Delta branded first class utensils, you can order a 64 piece set right now for just $32 plus s&h! Seriously?

So tell me, which planes did you like and which ones are you happy to see gone. The paint is old school on these; what did you think of the seats back then? – René

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From my fellow BA blogger Road Warriorette to recent news, it seems more and more people are getting hurt when they don’t need to. As a nation we finally get it that we all need to be buckled up when we drive. Even baggage handlers need to buckle up as it can mean life and death on the tarmac even for them!

So what are the risks for taking a casual attitude toward ALWAYS wearing your seat-belt when flying? I want you to look at these stories over the past year:

This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We will receive compensation when you click on links to those products. For an explanation of our Advertiser Disclosure, and advertiser partners, such as American Express, visit this page.

This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We will receive compensation when you click on links to those products. For an explanation of our Advertiser Disclosure, and advertiser partners, such as American Express, visit this page.

It is Friday. The week has been long. How about we end the week with some smiles. Back before I was Delta Points I loved all the BA bloggers. I loved how Ben and Gary did the back and forth between the blogs. Then one of the other bloggers, Frequent Miler, did a made up text of an argument over Membership Rewards vs. Delta Skymiles. Here is the result put to cartoons I did after borrowing the script.

Then recently I found a Frontier video for their new mascot that is so funny I roared out loud. It is just hilarious and very well done!

And since it is just about time to punch the clock for the week, this may be the way your flight goes on the way back home tonight!

Have a fun weekend and tell me what video you like the best of the 3 for a chance to win a DeltaPoints T-shirt today! – Rene

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A set of retractable earbuds, a gogo 1 time pass and DeltaPoints luggage tag!

Feel free to sign up for the once a day e-Mail from DeltaPoints for a chance to win. Next month I will have fewer drawings but for even more kool stuff like maybe an E-Reader or a GPS or stuff like that! Sound good? – Rene

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I love SPG. I also love Sheraton hotels and the club level with it’s mini-skyclubs (just no free wine/beer like in the skyclubs). For me spending 3-4k SPG points a night for a club level room is a great value. The rooms at most Sheratons are nice. The staff at every location I have ever stayed at are professional and courteous.

Also keep in mind that SPG points, when you send 20,000 points from SPG to Delta, rewards you with 5000 bonus points (i.e. 20,000 SPG = 25,000 Delta). I value my SPG points more than Delta Points, but if you need to top off for a trip, the bonus is a nice perk. – René

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Ooooops! I forgot to do a daily drawing yesterday for Deltapoints.com so today I will just have to pick two winners. And they are…. # 354 (Ben) and # 27 (??? will get name soon)!

Congratulations to today’s winners! I will contact you via e-Mail soon. You both get a DeltaPoints T-Shirt and Luggage tag swag combo! Thanks all for subscribing to DeltaPoints.com daily e-Mail blast for a chance to WIN! – Rene

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This is truly an interesting move by Delta. Airline “people” are not risk averse or they would not be in the airline business. We all know that one of the biggest costs to run an airline is jet fuel. Fuel requirements are more or less a known variable, and every cent up or down in price can make a HUGE impact on profitability for an airline.

So is this a good idea? Time will tell. Delta is right now making money with more earning reports out soon. It is hard to make money in this industry and the margins in the refining business are also very thin and one of the reasons the Trainer facility was shut down last fall but Delta does not need to make as much money on this as a stand alone business since all they want is cheaper Jet Fuel.

Delta expect to save money, as much as 10%, by buying wholesale Jet Fuel by both making it and, in effect, trading the rest of the output from production for more Jet Fuel. Long term Delta’s NYC expansion / domination strategy and now this facility nearby could be brilliant or another way for airlines to lose even more money. The price of crude oil now will impact Delta good or bad even more!

So what do you think. I have set up a poll on the top right of the blog and will have some fun topics now and then where you can weigh in and give your feedback. Do you think it is a good idea for Delta to get into the oil refining business? Yes / No / Don’t know? – René

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Well not me, but my wife that is. As I talked about before, and every blogger on the planet will tell you soon, the spend required for the INK BOLD should move from $5000 to $10,000 to get the 50,000 Ultimate Reward points ! (below is what you see if you go direct to the Chase site and look for the card)

So today became a mini-app day for my wife. She has never had the INK BOLD card so we went for it. We got the standard thanks for the application as almost no one gets an instant approval and will have to call to follow up to verify and get the final OK (1-800-453-9719 is the number to call btw). Sometimes you have to move come credit lines around to get the job done and approved. We are ready to do that as well as the SW Air card can go if need be.

As always, know your credit and treasure your credit score and standing. These can be your keys to enjoy vacations you never though you could afford! – Rene (my link below and thank you for supporting the blog!)

EDIT: Update on round so far from today. My wife called right away to reconsideration line with Chase and was approved by closing the SW AIR card and taking some credit line from Freedom Card! Also approved on Bank of Hawaii card. Only the Citi to go for perfect 3 for 3 and 100% for all apps for the year. It looks like another year with 1 million+ points is on the way!

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photo credit: tryingteaching.com

Hopefully you’re getting, or have already received, a refund rather than having to pay up! If you end up owing money this year to Uncle Sam, have you ever thought of earning some Delta Skymiles with your payment? The IRS allows payments by credit card and has a helpful table to show you what rates their payment processors charge as “convenience fees” for various forms of payment.

The Points Guy has a pretty comprehensive post on how to evaluate whether the miles are worth the fees. When it comes to state and local taxes, the rules vary by state and you should check your state’s Dept. of Revenue page to see what you can do where you live.

Need some deduction ideas? While I’m no tax professional and you should absolutely check with your own tax professional on any and all tax related matters, here are a few things you might consider.

If you have a ton of Skymiles sitting around and you’re thinking, “Hey, I know, I’ll donate miles to a charity for a tax deduction!” Think again! While Delta offers miles donation to SkyWish charities, these are NOT tax deductible! The only way I can think of making this possibly work as a deduction would be to go to the Skymiles Marketplace and convert your miles into gift cards and then give those gift cards away.

Ever thought of collecting the hotel amenities – shampoo, soap, combs, etc. – and then donating these to a shelter or other charity? Million Mile Secrets has a great post about this. Again, I’m not a tax professional so check with yours to see if this is something you may be able to count as tax deductible.

Do you keep track of your Goodwill donations? My wife and I both really dislike the process of having a garage sale, so we give everything we can to Goodwill, track it all, and take the deduction. I can find much better things to do on Saturday mornings than barter over 50¢ at 7:00am for a toaster I no longer use! You can check the values of items here at Goodwill.com.

This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We will receive compensation when you click on links to those products. For an explanation of our Advertiser Disclosure, and advertiser partners, such as American Express, visit this page.

This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We will receive compensation when you click on links to those products. For an explanation of our Advertiser Disclosure, and advertiser partners, such as American Express, visit this page.

Well don’t let that frustrate you anymore. All you have to do now is follow these four simple steps to get the 2nd bag FREE. KLM/ AF now has a program for subscribers to flyingbluegolf.com. So here is what you have to do.

See! (hope you feel the sarcasm by now) Isn’t that simple. There are a few drawbacks for us Delta flyers, like not earning Skymiles, and not being able to fly any Delta metal planes, and having to pack stuff around your golf clubs – but hey – we are talking about being able to check an extra bag for FREE!

OK so maybe this is not such a great deal. There will be exceptions naturally. It is a great deal if say you are flying on a FREE frequent flyer ticket from Delta on KLM/AF metal. All you have to do is sign up for a Flying Blue number and put that in your reservation rather than your Skymiles number. You are not going to earn miles on a free ticket anyway. And if you are going to play golf, it is nice you can get your sticks over for free.

I wish the rain would stop – all this talk about golf makes me want to play – René

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